The Choice
by WhitneyMcDonald
Summary: Based loosely on recent spoilers. Pauline Hay has cancer and Ste Hay starts to look after his poorly mother. Though he soon finds out a lot more about his life. He finally reconnects with his two sisters, devastated by a revelation and visits two people in prison. Brendan being one but why does Brendan suddenly give him an visiting order?


_Loosely based on spoilers._

The Choice

**Chapter One: Father**

Steven Hay uncovered the box which showed twenty-two unread birthday cards, as he took them down from the dusty top shelf again. His mother Pauline Hay snatched them of him yesterday evening, which startled him. Does she really hate him that much? That she would refuse his father and him contact. She completely cut of all contact, for some unknown reason.

"Put that back" a female voice croaked behind him, as his mother stood in the doorway. She looked like a ghost of her former self. She looked so pale, so morbid.

Steven looked at her, still holding onto the cardboard box. As he showed no intention of doing as he was told, even if she was dying. He still had the right to disobey her, after all she disobeyed his pleads for her love for years.

"Why?" Steven asked her, hoping she would get onto the question. Surely she is aware that he wants to know more about his real father. Rather than just the reason to put the box of cards back on the shelf.

"Because I said so" Pauline replied, Steven scoffed. She really wants to avoid this question, maybe she does feel guilty. She is human after all and can feel something other than hatred and bitterness.

He walked away from the shelf, still holding onto that box. As he walked towards his mother, who attempted to snatch the box but he pulled it away. She walked towards him, once again she attempted to snatch the box.

"Not until you tell me why" Steven stood his ground, holding the box behind his back. Pauline sighed, as she walked out of the spare room where they were both situated. He could hear Pauline walking back into her bedroom and getting under her covers.

"Make me a glass of water" Pauline coughed, her coughs were getting more and more frequent as each day passes. Her sickness soon followed, as she belched into the bucket by the side of her double bed. Which she has slept alone in ever since Terry fled after she admitted to him that she has cancer.

"There you go" Steven passed her the water, sitting on the edge of the bed. As Pauline took small slips of the water which was placed in a common glass. She placed it the top of the drawers which was filled with tissues, empty glasses and empty cough medicine bottles.

"Mum, please I got the right to know" Steven spoke, passing her the box. She snatched it of him almost straight away. Stuffing it down the side of her bed, in a bad mood. As she glared at Steven, looking bitter.

"You had no right to go through my things" Pauline insisted, taking some more slips of her water. Putting it back down, as she accidentally knocked over the picture frame which had a picture of a young Pauline and Terry wearing matching jeans and matching leather jackets while they were both sat on a swing besides one another, smiling.

"I wish I didn't love him because he is hurting me even when he is not here" Pauline groaned, while trying to reach for the photograph. As tears came with sweat, Steven shook his head as he reached for the photograph himself and passed it to her.

"Thank you" Pauline snatched the photograph of him, holding it closer to her. As she let tears fall down, she missed Terry. He was her childhood sweetheart as well as her adult sweetheart.

"Why are you crying over him? He left you because you had cancer; he never loved you" Steven was cut of by a devastated Pauline.

"He did love me, you didn't know him like I did" Pauline was utterly heartbroken. She always thought that and she will think that till the day she dies which if she gets her way will be sooner than the doctors estimation.

"What about my dad? Mum, I wanna know why you been hiding these letters from me" Steven tells her, they were no point in quarreling about Terry. The fact is Pauline will always love him and Steven will always hate him. Nobody was going to win the argument.

"I don't know what to tell you Ste" Pauline replied to him. Placing the photograph back on the drawers. Moving the glass of water aside so the photograph is facing towards her. She smiles as she looks at it.

"The truth" Steven tells her, the truth is all he wants from her. Though he was not sure she could even do that, she has let him down all his life so letting him down one more time is something she would likely do.

"Okay, your dad was a one night stand, it did not mean anything so if you're expecting a big love story than you can forget it" Pauline coughed again and spoke something that hurt Steven so much. "You were a mistake"

Ste let tears fall down, a mistake. He was a mistake, that's all he seems to be to her. A stupid, silly little mistake. No wonder she treated him like shit, she never wanted him or planned for him. He ruined her life.

"To you maybe but obviously not to my dad otherwise he wouldn't have sent me all those letters" Steven cried, he hoped that was true or is Pauline going to break his heart again. Maybe a sweet lie would be better than the painful truth.

"Ste, the only dad you had has been Terry; If you dad wanted to see you so much then he would have tried but he didn't" Pauline replied to him. She shuddered at the lie, even on her deathbed. She can't help but lie.

"Then why did he send me all those cards?" Steven asked, wiping away incoming tears. As he tried to imagine what his father looked like, he could picture him looking scruffy but he was misunderstood.

"I did not want to break your heart, imagine if I gave you all those cards and then you went to go look for him and he would of just sent you away Ste; I couldn't disappoint you like that" Pauline pouted.

"No, he sent me cards" Steven couldn't take it in. If he didn't want to see him, then why would he send him all these cards. What was the point?

"Yes because I forced him to" Pauline lied, she has dug herself too deep now. As she tried to make up more excuses.

"For twenty-two years? If you forced him to then why didn't you show me the letters; what was the point in forcing him if I didn't even see the letters; stop lying to me mum" Steven saw right through the lies.

"I don't know; stop asking me questions, you always did think you were too clever for me didn't you, you use to try to take my wine of me all the time!" Pauline then started to cough furiously. She shouldn't have shouted.

"I've not got time for this, you know I thought you changed but it turns out I was wrong" Steven stood up, as he walked over to the door. He couldn't actually go through with leaving her alone, he wanted her to stop him.

"Ste please" Pauline pleaded, as she looked over as he stood outside the door, with his hand meters away from the door handle.

"Are you going to tell me the truth?" Ste asked her, he wanted the truth more than anything. Maybe he could patch things up his father, then he have someone else in his life. He needed someone right now and he was always missing a _real _father figure.

"I only did it to protect you" Pauline replied. As she lifted the box up, finally letting him see the cards. As she held them up so he could take them, he walked over. Gently taking the box from his poorly mother.

"How?" Ste asked her, taking the first card out. He opened it, it had a picture of a cartoon dog and in red bright letters. _1 Today!_ His father started right from when he was born. A ten pound note also fell out.

"Got his brother to put that in" Pauline spoke,with more bitterness. As she watched him read the short words.

_To Ste,_

_Happy Birthday_

_From Daddy_

"Yeah cause I sound like I need protecting from him" Steven spoke with obvious sarcasm. Though he was hurt, deep down.

"Where is he?" Ste asked, placing the card down and the notes. Pauline gulped, she knew exactly where he was and she knew exactly why too.

"Prison" Pauline honestly replied, telling him the truth for the first time in ages. She kept the truth hidden and it's understandable that she didn't want to let her son know that 'daddy' was in prison.

"What?" Ste paused. "Why?" Ste asked. As all sorts of reasons were now playing in head. What did he do? Murder? Assault? Arson? Robbery? It must have been something pretty bad for him to end up in prison for twenty-two years.

"I don't believe you" Ste replied, why should he? She never told him the truth before so why now? Was she purposefully lying so Ste wouldn't go out looking for him?

"It's true" Pauline pressured. She said it as if it was a every day thing to happen. Though how she grew up and where she lived. Someone getting arrested was totally normal and someone close to her getting arrested was even more normal.

"Why?" Ste asked. Her tone made him rightfully believe her. He could hardly judge him. The love of his life is in prison and he still loves him. So maybe his father was a good man but made a lot of bad choices.

"Arson, he set fire to his own house thought he could get insurance; the stupid idiot; I hate him and you know why I hate every single bone in his ugly, disgusting, soulless body; well when he set fire to his own house, despite his son being on the way; no Ste, he couldn't give jack all about ya" Pauline paused.

"He got arrested for setting fire to his own house and you know why he got twenty-two inside?" Pauline asked him. He shook his head, of cause he doesn't.

"His sister was in there, the prick didn't even check if anyone was in there; his sister couldn't get out, she was burned to a crisp; your dad was devastated that he killed his own sister" Pauline choked, Steven lets tears fall down. It was a sad, horrible story and to think that his father done that.

"But it was an accident?" Ste asked her, with more tears. As he looks down on the first card again, this man on paper seemed so different.

"Yeah it was, he loved his sister; more than he ever loved me or you" Pauline informed him, looking back down on the cards with a sigh. As she picked up one.

"Here" Pauline passed him the most 'important' one. As he opened it, it read. _16 Today! _on the front. As he hesitated before opening up the card.

_To Ste,_

_I know what it's like turning 16, you can legally sleep with women, take drugs, go clubbing, drink but it's not everything you think it is. I made a lot of mistakes in my time, one is what I done to end up here. In prison son, I figured you're older enough to know the truth if mum hasn't told you already._

_I love you son, even I never got to meet you. My brother has been telling me all about you and your new friend Amy. Treat her well and don't hurt the girl. You uncle knows about these things from your mum. If I was out of the old nick then I would get Terry away. I hate him as much as you. Happy birthday and remember turning 16 doesn't mean go crazy. Though do have some fun._

_From Dad_

"Really? Have fun" Ste scoffed. As he placed the card down, another ten pound note fell from the card. Looking back up at his mother, who looked at him with sad eyes.

"Now you know why I kept them from you" Pauline whimpered. As she wiped away tears, Ste has seen her cry before. She use to cry a lot when he was a little boy. Terry was responsible for every single tear.

"I wanna see him in prison" Ste told her. As she looked away from him.


End file.
